In living

In annoying linking to other places, I published one of my favorite first posts on Mamalode.

At their root, my fears are selfish, selfish things. It’s not that they can be taken out of this world that strikes the worst fear in me. We all live with that truth. It’s that I could be left behind. My deepest fear is trying to survive in a world that had them in it and lost them. … The Space Between on Mamalode.

In reading, I’m in the middle of Breaking Night by Liz Murray. It’s dark and a little chaotic, but it’s the most raw and real depiction of drug addiction and how it creates homelessness that I’ve ever read.

In watching, I will adore Grey’s Anatomy to the bitter end. Downton Abbey continues to thrill me. If I admit that I also love The Bachelor and Dance Moms can we still be friends?

In kids, Saige would like to know if there are girl ninjas. I say yes, of course there are girl ninjas, otherwise there would be no baby ninjas and shortly thereafter NO NINJAS AT ALL. Besides, girls are badass at ninja stuff. Quinn wants to know many things including where our friend‘s sweet dog’s bones went. He teacher thinks they went to heaven, but he thinks it might be outer space. I told him he might be right because all lost carbon drifts into the stars eventually. Nater Skater declared – in a complete reversal of his previous position – that he would jump off the diving board at swimming and would henceforth like to be known as Nater SWIMMER. Garrett is hard to read (I’m not sure that bodes well for the future) but when he does talk, it is always in a fake British accent he learned from Harry Potter. Maddening.

In cooking, I made peppercorn steaks and baked apple tarts last week. Ahahahahahahah. hah. Where the hell do you think you are? A real blog? My culinary week peaked with peanut butter tofu on Thursday, which caused NO LESS THAN THREE of my children to choose bed at 6:00 p.m. rather than endure the dinner table without complaining. It’s my new record. Saige finished. Saige will choke down anything for an Oreo cookie. She’s a girl after my own heart. Dinner is overrated. If it were up to me we’d eat cereal and pizza. Pass the Oreos.

In crafting, bwahahahahahaha. Seriously though, does anyone ever go through phases where you feel intense guilt about this mythical parent you used to be. I swear I used to do more projects and shit with the kids. Life had been crazy and we rarely have a lazy afternoon to cut, or play letter games, or even take a walk. And now I am pining for the good old days in the lives of my children who are all under seven years old. ARG. Get off my lawn. I’ve thought about letting them try writing secret messages with lemon juice. Does that count?

In Matt news, he spent all day today building a self-composting pit toilet in the garage. Because I said I’m not going to The Land until there is a toilet. Next time, I will be more specific.

Yes, there are girl ninjas, and my 7 year old is reading the book to prove it! The Magic Tree House series has a Night of the Ninjas book. We just read through a part where the kids were surprised that the one ninja was a chick-ninja. (I would tell you what happened next, but it was my husband’s turn to read with her!)

If it weren’t for the kids, it’d be cake for breakfast, pb&j for lunch, and cereal for dinner every. single. day. As for lazy afternoons? In theory we still have those, but for some reason they don’t feel relaxing. I can barely sneak in that piece of cake I gave up for breakfast without a little voice asking, “Is that chocolate? Can I have some?” I swear they have a sensor. I love your Mamalode essay and thanks for the book rec!

WTH is wrong with regular peanut butter? ;) OMG…. I wouldn’t eat peanut butter tofu for dinner either. Never understood forcing kids to “try new foods” or eat stuff they don’t like. Who says you are a better person if you eat a wider variety of food? My husband grew up in Nome and had to clean his plate. He eats raw whale and all kinds of other funky/smelly Eskimo foods. I have a limited selection of things that I will eat. I really don’t think he’s happier. Maybe I’m wrong? I should ask him.

I love you. You crack me up.

Oh and ….. did I miss the page in the parenting handbook that said “thou shalt not feed children cereal for dinner”? Two of our eight live almost solely on cereal. They’re fine. (I think).

In our house, if you don’t like what is for dinner you can have cereal (or pb sandwich) and a piece of fruit/vegetable (by the way-polly o cheese sticks are not a vegetable). Some nights I don’t know why I even bothered to cook considering the amount of cereal being poured–so I don’t. Long live Cheerios!

This is awesome. And the answer is that – YES – you did tons more creative shit before you had four kids and started toting said kids to activities in which the older ones participate. I can’t believe my husband and I used to actually LOOK FOR THINGS TO DO TO OCCUPY THE CHILDREN. Like we used to go to the ice cream place every Thursday night in the summer because they had a free bouncy things that would wear the kids out so they’d sleep at night. And we only went to church Wednesday night BECAUSE THEY HAD NURSERY. It was an hour of kid-free time when they were also entertained. And they would take slides into their classrooms. Awesome. Now we barely go to church on Sunday once a month.

And PROPS to you for sending three kids to bed before 6 pm over dinner. That seriously made my day. My stepson has been known to throw up while trying to choke down salad. And – after he threw up – we’d still send him to bed. Sans dinner. Ha. Now he’s ten. And he eats salad.

OH! And we had cereal for dinner Sunday night JUST BECAUSE OF YOU. Driving home from my in-laws. 7 pm. Exhausted. Needing to feed children. And CEREAL popped into my head. THANK YOU for the fabulous idea.

This really is such a great reference you are supplying so you give it apart for free. I enjoy viewing internet sites that view the price of offering a leading source at no cost. I must say i adored studying your posting. Cheers!